Touch sensor integrated type display device

This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2014-0103982 filed on Aug. 11, 2014, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a touch sensor integrated type display device, and more particularly, to a touch sensor integrated type display device capable of improving touch sensitivity while reducing the number of touch routing wires.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

In recent years, flat panel displays (hereinafter referred to as “display devices”), which are able to be manufactured as a large-sized display device at a low price and have high display quality (including capability of representing a motion picture, a resolution, brightness, a contrast ratio, a color representation capability, etc.), have been developed in accordance with the need for display devices capable of properly displaying the multimedia with the development of multimedia. Various input devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, a track ball, a joystick, and a digitizer, have been used in the display devices to allow users to interface with the display devices.

However, when the user makes use of these input devices, the user's dissatisfaction increases because the user is required to learn how to use the input devices and the input devices occupy space, thereby having difficulty in increasing the perfection of products. Thus, a demand for a convenient and simple input device for the display device capable of reducing erroneous operations is increasing. In response to the increased demand, a touch sensor has been proposed to recognize information when the user inputs the information by directly touching the screen or approaching the screen with his or her hand or a pen while he or she watches the display device.

The touch sensor has a simple configuration capable of reducing the erroneous operations. The user can also perform an input action without using a separate input device and can quickly and easily manipulate a display device through the contents displayed on the screen. Thus, the touch sensor has been applied to various display devices.

The touch sensor used in display devices may be classified into an add-on type touch sensor, an on-cell type touch sensor, and an integrated type (or in-cell type) touch sensor depending on its structure. The add-on type touch sensor is configured such that the display device and a touch sensor module including the touch sensor are individually manufactured and then the touch sensor module is attached to an upper substrate of the display device. The on-cell type touch sensor is configured such that elements constituting the touch sensor are directly formed on the surface of an upper glass substrate of the display device. The in-cell type touch sensor is configured such that elements constituting the touch sensor are mounted inside the display device to thereby achieve thin profile of the display device and increase the durability of the display device.

Among the above touch sensors, because the in-cell type touch sensor may commonly use a common electrode of the display device as a touch electrode, a thickness of the display device is decreased as compared to the other touch sensors. Further, because the touch elements of the in-cell type touch sensor are formed inside the display device, the durability of the display device may increase. Hence, the in-cell type touch sensor has been widely used.

The in-cell type touch sensor can solve the problems generated in the add-on type touch sensor and the on-cell type touch sensor because of the advantages of the thin profile and the durability improvement. The in-cell type touch sensor may be divided into a light type touch sensor and a capacitive touch sensor depending on a method for sensing a touched portion. The capacitive touch sensor may be subdivided into a self capacitive touch sensor and a mutual capacitive touch sensor.

The self capacitive touch sensor forms a plurality of independent patterns in a touch area of a touch sensing panel and measures changes in a capacitance of each independent pattern, thereby deciding whether or not a touch operation is performed. The mutual capacitive touch sensor crosses X-axis electrode lines (for example, driving electrode lines) and Y-axis electrode lines (for example, sensing electrode lines) in a touch electrode formation area of a touch sensing panel to form a matrix, applies a driving pulse to the X-axis electrode lines, and senses changes in voltages generated in sensing nodes defined as crossings of the X-axis electrode lines and the Y-axis electrode lines through the Y-axis electrode lines, thereby deciding whether or not a touch operation is performed.

In the mutual capacitive touch sensor, a mutual capacitance generated in touch recognition of the mutual capacitive touch sensor is very small, but a parasitic capacitance between gate line and data lines constituting the display device is very large. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately recognize a touch position because of the parasitic capacitance.

Further, because a plurality of touch driving lines for a touch drive and a plurality of touch sensing lines for a touch sensing have to be formed on the common electrode for the multi-touch recognition of the mutual capacitive touch sensor, the mutual capacitive touch sensor requires a very complex line structure.

On the other hand, because the self capacitive touch sensor has a simpler line structure than the mutual capacitive touch sensor, touch accuracy may increase. Hence, the self capacitive touch sensor has been widely used, if necessary or desired.

A related art liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as “touch sensor integrated type display device”), in which a self capacitive touch sensor is embedded, is described below with reference to FIG. 1 . FIG. 1 is a plane view of a related art touch sensor integrated type display device.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the touch sensor integrated type display device includes an active area AA, in which touch electrodes are formed and data is displayed, and a bezel area BA positioned outside the active area AA. In the bezel area BA, various wires and a touch integrated circuit (IC) 10 are formed.

The active area AA includes a plurality of touch electrodes Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , and Tx 51 -T 54 divided in a first direction (for example, x-axis direction) and a second direction (for example, y-axis direction) crossing the first direction and a plurality of touch routing wires TW 11 -TW 14 , TW 21 -TW 24 , TW 31 -TW 34 , TW 41 -TW 44 , and TW 51 -TW 54 , which are respectively connected to the plurality of touch electrodes Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , and Tx 51 -T 54 and are arranged in parallel with one another in the second direction.

The plurality of touch electrodes Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , and Tx 51 -T 54 inside the active area AA are formed by dividing a common electrode of the display device, and thus operate as common electrodes in a display drive for displaying data and operate as touch electrodes in a touch drive for recognizing a touch position.

The bezel area BA positioned outside the active area AA includes the touch IC 10 and various wires. In the display drive, a driving IC for the display device and the touch IC 10 drive gate lines (not shown) of the display device, supply display data to data lines (not shown), and supply a common voltage to the touch electrodes (or the common electrodes). In the touch drive, the touch IC 10 supplies a touch driving voltage to the touch electrodes and scans changes in a capacitance of each touch electrode before and after a touch operation, thereby determining a position of the touched touch electrode. The various wires include the touch routing wires TW 11 -TW 14 , TW 21 -TW 24 , TW 31 -TW 34 , TW 41 -TW 44 , and TW 51 -TW 54 connected to the touch electrodes Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , and Tx 51 -T 54 , the gate lines connected to the touch IC 10 , and the data lines.

The related art touch sensor integrated type display device respectively connects the touch routing wires TW 11 -TW 14 , TW 21 -TW 24 , TW 31 -TW 34 , TW 41 -TW 44 , and TW 51 -TW 54 to the touch electrodes Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , and Tx 51 -T 54 . Thus, because one touch routing wire has to be connected to each touch electrode, the number of touch routing wires increases as the size of the display device becomes larger. For example, when touch electrodes each having a pitch of 4.3 mm are disposed in a 15.6-inch display device, about 80 touch electrodes of one line in a horizontal direction and about 45 touch electrodes of one line in a vertical direction are required. As a result, the total number of touch electrodes is about 3600, and the 3600 touch electrodes are connected to the touch IC 10 through 3600 touch routing wires, respectively. Because the touch IC 10 includes a circuit for driving each touch electrode, the manufacturing cost of the display device increases as the size of the touch IC 10 becomes larger.

Furthermore, when the number of touch routing wires increases as the size of the display device becomes larger, a parasitic capacitance between the touch routing wires and the gate and data lines of the display device increases. Hence, the touch sensitivity is reduced.

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a touch sensor integrated type display device that substantially obviates one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

An object of the present invention is to provide a touch sensor integrated type display device capable of preventing an increase in the size of a touch integrated circuit (IC) resulting from an increase in the size of the display device by reducing the number of touch routing wires and capable of improving touch sensitivity by reducing a parasitic capacitance between the touch routing wires and gate and data lines.

Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.

To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, a touch sensor integrated type display device comprises a plurality of gate lines and a plurality of data lines which are arranged crossing each other; a plurality of pixel electrodes respectively disposed in pixel areas defined by the crossing of the plurality of gate lines and the plurality of data lines; a plurality of touch electrodes arranged in a matrix with a row direction and a column direction, each touch electrode overlapping at least one respective pixel electrode; a 1 - 1 touch routing wire arranged in the row direction and configured to connect 1 - 1 touch electrodes among the plurality of touch electrodes disposed on one row of an odd-numbered row and an even-numbered row, and one column of an odd-numbered column and an even-numbered column; a plurality of 2 - 1 touch routing wires arranged in the column direction and respectively connected to 2 - 1 touch electrodes disposed on the one row of the odd-numbered row and the even-numbered row, and another column of an odd-numbered column and an even-numbered column; a 1 - 2 touch routing wire arranged in parallel with the 1 - 1 touch routing wire and configured to connect 1 - 2 touch electrodes disposed on another row of the odd-numbered row and the even-numbered row, and the another column of an odd-numbered column and an even-numbered column; and at least one 2 - 2 touch routing wire arranged in parallel with the 2 - 1 touch routing wire and configured to connect 2 - 2 touch electrodes disposed on the another row of the even-numbered row and the odd-numbered row, and the another column of the odd-numbered column and the even-numbered column.

In another aspect, a touch sensor integrated type display device comprises a plurality of gate lines and a plurality of data lines which are arranged crossing each other; a plurality of pixel electrodes respectively disposed in pixel areas defined by the crossing of the plurality of gate lines and the plurality of data lines; a plurality of touch electrodes arranged in an oblique direction of a row direction and an oblique direction of a column direction, each touch electrode overlapping at least one respective pixel electrode, and including a first touch electrode and a second touch electrode surrounding the first touch electrode; a plurality of touch link lines configured to connect a predetermined number of first touch electrodes and form a plurality of groups of the first touch electrodes; a plurality of first touch routing wires which are respectively connected to the plurality of touch link lines and are arranged in the column direction; a plurality of second touch routing wires which connect the second touch electrodes arranged on one row of an odd-numbered row and an even-numbered row among the plurality of touch electrodes and are arranged in parallel with one another in the column direction; and a third touch routing wire which connects the second touch electrodes arranged on another row of odd-numbered row and the even-numbered row among the plurality of touch electrodes.

In yet another aspect, a touch sensor integrated type display device comprises a plurality of gate lines and a plurality of data lines which are arranged crossing each other; a plurality of pixel electrodes respectively disposed in pixel areas defined by the crossing of the plurality of gate lines and the plurality of data lines; a plurality of touch electrodes arranged in a matrix with a row direction and a column direction, each touch electrode overlapping at least one respective pixel electrode; a 1 - 1 touch routing wire arranged in the row direction configured to connect 1 - 1 touch electrodes among the plurality of touch electrodes, the 1 - 1 touch electrodes including alternating ones of the touch electrodes of one row; a plurality of 2 - 1 touch routing wires arranged in the column direction which are connected to respective ones of 2 - 1 touch electrodes, the 2 - 1 electrodes including a touch electrodes directly between respective ones of the 1 - 1 touch electrodes as well as alternating ones of the touch electrodes in the column direction; a 1 - 2 touch routing wire arranged parallel to the 1 - 1 touch routing wire and configured to connect 1 - 2 touch electrodes among the plurality of touch electrodes, the 1 - 2 touch electrodes including alternating ones of the touch electrodes of a row other than the row of the 1 - 1 touch electrodes such that 1 - 1 touch electrode and the 2 - 1 touch electrodes are disposed in respectively different columns; and at least one 2 - 2 touch routing wire arranged parallel to the 2 - 1 touch routing wire and configured to connect 2 - 2 touch electrodes, the 2 - 2 touch electrodes including every other touch electrode of a column corresponding to one of 1 - 1 touch electrodes such that the 2 - 2 touch electrodes are in a same row as the 1 - 2 touch electrodes.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plane view of a related art touch sensor integrated type display device;

FIG. 2 is a partial exploded perspective view schematically showing a touch sensor integrated type display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a plane view of a touch sensor integrated type display device according to a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a plane view enlarging an area R 1 shown in FIG. 3 ;

FIG. 5 is a plane view showing in detail an area R 2 shown in FIG. 4 ;

FIG. 6 is a plane view showing an example of an area corresponding to one pixel electrode shown in FIG. 5 ;

FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires and 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch electrodes shown in FIG. 5 in a structure shown in FIG. 6 ;

FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch routing wires and 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch electrodes shown in FIG. 5 in a structure shown in FIG. 6 ;

FIG. 8 is a plane view showing another example of an area corresponding to one pixel electrode shown in FIG. 5 ;

FIG. 9A is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires and 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch electrodes shown in FIG. 5 in a structure shown in FIG. 8 ;

FIG. 9B is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch routing wires and 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch electrodes shown in FIG. 5 in a structure shown in FIG. 8 ;

FIG. 10 is a plane view of a touch sensor integrated type display device according to a second embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 11 is a plane view enlarging an area R 3 shown in FIG. 10 ; and

FIG. 12 illustrates an operation of a display driving period and an operation of a touch driving period in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first and second embodiments of the invention.

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Where possible, the same or like reference numbers may be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. In the following description, a liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as “touch sensor integrated type display device”), in which a self capacitive touch sensor is embedded, is used as an example of a touch sensor integrated type display device. However, other examples of display devices may be used as a touch sensor integrated type display device.

A touch sensor integrated type display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention is described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 . FIG. 2 is a partial exploded perspective view schematically showing a touch sensor integrated type display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention. FIG. 3 is a plane view of a touch sensor integrated type display device according to a first embodiment of the invention.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the touch sensor integrated type display device according to an embodiment of the invention includes a liquid crystal display panel LCP having a thin film transistor (TFT) array TFTA and a color filter array CFA which are positioned opposite to each other with a liquid crystal layer (not shown) interposed therebetween.

The TFT array TFTA includes a plurality of gate lines G 1 and G 2 which are formed in parallel in a first direction (for example, x-axis direction) on a first substrate SUB 1 , a plurality of data lines D 1 and D 2 which are formed in parallel in a second direction (for example, y-axis direction) to cross over the plurality of gate lines G 1 and G 2 , thin film transistors TFT formed at crossings of the gate lines G 1 and G 2 and the data lines D 1 and D 2 , a plurality of pixel electrodes Px for charging liquid crystal cells to a data voltage, and a plurality of common electrodes (not shown) positioned opposite the plurality of pixel electrodes Px.

The color filter array CFA includes black matrixes (not shown) and color filters (not shown), which are formed on a second substrate SUB 2 . Polarizing plates POL 1 and POL 2 are respectively attached to external surfaces of the first substrate SUB 1 and the second substrate SUB 2 of the liquid crystal display panel LCP. Alignment layers (not shown) for setting a pre-tilt angle of liquid crystals are respectively formed on inner surfaces of the first and second substrates SUB 1 and SUB 2 contacting the liquid crystals. A column spacer may be formed between the TFT array TFTA and the color filter array CFA of the liquid crystal display panel LCP to maintain cell gaps of the liquid crystal cells.

The common electrodes are formed on the second substrate SUB 2 in a vertical electric field driving mode, such as a twisted nematic (TN) mode and a vertical alignment (VA) mode. Further, the common electrodes are formed on the first substrate SUB 1 along with the pixel electrodes Px in a horizontal electric field driving manner, such as an in-plane switching (IPS) mode and a fringe field switching (FFS) mode. In the following description, an embodiment of the invention is described based on a horizontal electric field driving manner, as an example.

In accordance with FIG. 3 , the touch sensor integrated type display device according to a first embodiment of the invention may include an active area AA and a bezel area BA positioned outside the active area AA in a manner similar to those shown in FIG. 1 . The active area AA is an area, in which touch electrodes serving as common electrodes are formed and data is displayed. The bezel area BA is an area, in which a touch integrated circuit (IC) 100 and various wires including routing wires extending from the active area AA are formed.

The active area AA of the touch sensor integrated type display device includes a plurality of touch electrodes serving as common electrodes (hereinafter abbreviated to “touch electrodes”) Tx 11 -Tx 19 , Tx 21 -Tx 29 , Tx 31 -Tx 39 , Tx 41 -Tx 49 , Tx 51 -Tx 59 , Tx 61 -Tx 69 , Tx 71 -Tx 79 , and Tx 81 -Tx 89 divided in the first direction (for example, x-axis direction) and the second direction (for example, y-axis direction) crossing the first direction.

The 1 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 13 , Tx 15 , Tx 17 ; Tx 31 , Tx 33 , Tx 35 , Tx 37 ; Tx 51 , Tx 53 , Tx 55 , Tx 57 ; and Tx 71 , Tx 73 , Tx 75 , Tx 77 disposed on odd-numbered columns of odd-numbered rows of the active area AA are connected to 1 - 1 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , and TWX 7 arranged in the first direction based on the row. The 2 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 12 , Tx 14 , Tx 16 , Tx 18 ; Tx 32 , Tx 34 , Tx 36 , Tx 38 ; Tx 52 , Tx 54 , Tx 56 , Tx 58 ; and Tx 72 , Tx 74 , Tx 76 , Tx 78 disposed on even-numbered columns of the odd-numbered rows of the active area AA are connected to 2 - 1 touch routing wires TWP 12 , TWP 14 , TWP 16 , TWP 18 ; TWP 32 , TWP 34 , TWP 36 , TWP 38 ; TWP 52 , TWP 54 , TWP 56 , TWP 58 ; and TWP 72 , TWP 74 , TWP 76 , TWP 78 arranged in the second direction, respectively. The 2 - 1 touch routing wires TWP 12 , TWP 14 , TWP 16 , TWP 18 ; TWP 32 , TWP 34 , TWP 36 , TWP 38 ; TWP 52 , TWP 54 , TWP 56 , TWP 58 ; and TWP 72 , TWP 74 , TWP 76 , TWP 78 are arranged in parallel with one another.

Further, the 2 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 21 , Tx 41 , Tx 61 , Tx 81 ; Tx 23 , Tx 43 , Tx 63 , Tx 83 ; Tx 25 , Tx 45 , Tx 65 , Tx 85 ; Tx 27 , Tx 47 , Tx 67 , Tx 87 ; and Tx 29 , Tx 49 , Tx 69 , Tx 89 disposed on odd-numbered columns of even-numbered rows of the active area AA are connected to 2 - 2 touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 , and TWY 5 arranged in the second direction based on the column. The 1 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 22 , Tx 24 , Tx 26 , Tx 28 ; Tx 42 , Tx 44 , Tx 46 , Tx 48 ; Tx 62 , Tx 64 , Tx 66 , Tx 68 ; and Tx 82 , Tx 84 , Tx 86 , Tx 88 disposed on even-numbered columns of the even-numbered rows of the active area AA are connected to 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , and TWX 8 arranged in the first direction based on the row. The 1 - 1 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , and TWX 7 and the 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , and TWX 8 are alternately positioned and are arranged in parallel with each other. The 2 - 2 touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 , and TWY 5 are arranged in parallel with the 2 - 1 touch routing wires TWP 12 , TWP 14 , TWP 16 , TWP 18 ; TWP 32 , TWP 34 , TWP 36 , TWP 38 ; TWP 52 , TWP 54 , TWP 56 , TWP 58 ; and TWP 72 , TWP 74 , TWP 76 , TWP 78 .

In a related art device, 80 touch electrodes of one line type in a horizontal direction and 45 touch electrodes of another line type in a vertical direction are used in a 15.6-inch display device. Thus, a total of 3600 touch routing wires are required. On the other hand, in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 3 , the 40 1 - 1 touch routing wires, the 40 1 - 2 touch routing wires, the 920 (=40×23) 2 - 1 touch routing wires, and the 22 2 - 2 touch routing wires are used in the 15.6-inch display device. Thus, the total number of touch routing wires used is 1,022. As a result, the embodiment of the invention may reduce the number of touch routing wires by about 65% as compared to the related art.

The touch routing wires connected to the touch electrodes may have arrangements other than FIG. 3 . For example, the touch electrodes disposed on the even-numbered columns of the odd-numbered rows may be connected to the 1 - 1 touch routing wires arranged in the first direction, and the touch electrodes disposed on the odd-numbered columns of the even-numbered rows may be connected to the 1 - 2 touch routing wires arranged in the first direction. In this instance, the touch electrodes disposed on the odd-numbered columns of the odd-numbered rows may be respectively connected to 2 - 3 touch routing wires, which are arranged in parallel with one another in the second direction similar to the 2 - 1 touch routing wires. Further, the touch electrodes disposed on the even-numbered columns of the even-numbered rows may be connected to 2 - 4 touch routing wires arranged similar to the 2 - 2 touch routing wires, so that the touch electrodes disposed on the same column are connected to one touch routing wire.

Next, an example of a relationship between the touch electrode and the pixel electrode in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first embodiment of the invention is described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 . FIG. 4 is a plane view enlarging an area R 1 shown in FIG. 3 , and FIG. 5 is a plane view showing in detail an area R 2 shown in FIG. 4 .

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to an embodiment of the invention, 9 pixel electrodes P 11 -P 33 ; P 14 -P 36 ; P 41 -P 63 ; and P 44 -P 66 arranged in the form of 3×3 matrix respectively correspond to the touch electrodes Tx 11 ; Tx 12 ; Tx 21 ; and Tx 22 . The pixel electrodes P 11 -P 33 ; P 14 -P 36 ; P 41 -P 63 ; and P 44 -P 66 are disposed in areas defined by the plurality of gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 arranged in the first direction and the plurality of data lines DL 1 to DL 6 arranged in the second direction crossing the first direction. FIG. 5 shows that the 9 pixel electrodes correspond to each touch electrode, for example, but the embodiment of the invention is not limited thereto. For example, the number of pixel electrodes corresponding to one touch electrode may be adjusted, if necessary or desired.

Next, an example of a connection structure between the touch routing wires and the touch electrodes in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first embodiment of the invention is described in detail with reference to FIGS. 6, 7A, and 7B . FIG. 6 is a plane view showing an example of an area corresponding to one pixel electrode shown in FIG. 5 . FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between the 1 - 1 touch routing wire (or the 1 - 2 touch routing wire) and the 1 - 1 touch electrode (or the 1 - 2 touch electrode) shown in FIG. 5 in a structure shown in FIG. 6 . FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between the 2 - 1 touch routing wire (or the 2 - 2 touch routing wire) and the 2 - 1 touch electrode (or the 2 - 2 touch electrode) shown in FIG. 5 in the structure shown in FIG. 6 . In the following description, an embodiment of the invention is described based on one pixel area for the sake of brevity and ease of reading.

As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7B , the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the embodiment of the invention includes the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 and the data lines DL 1 to DL 6 , which are formed to cross over each other on the substrate SUB 1 of the TFT array TFTA, thin film transistors (TFTs) formed at crossings of the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 and the data lines DL 1 to DL 6 , the pixel electrodes P 11 to P 66 formed in areas defined by the crossing of the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 and the data lines DL 1 to DL 6 , and the touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 12 , Tx 21 , and Tx 22 serving as the common electrode positioned opposite the pixel electrodes P 11 to P 66 . The touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 12 , Tx 21 , and Tx 22 serving as the common electrode perform a function of the common electrode in a display drive and perform a function of the touch electrode in a touch drive.

In the above configuration of the display device, the plurality of gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 are formed on the substrate SUB 1 in parallel with one another, and a gate insulating layer GI is formed on the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 to cover the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 . An active layer A, a source electrode SE, and a drain electrode DE constituting the thin film transistor are formed on the gate insulating layer GI.

Namely, each thin film transistor includes a gate electrode GE extending from each of the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 formed on the substrate SUB 1 , the active layer A formed on the gate insulating layer GI covering each of the gate lines GL 1 to GL 6 and the gate electrode GE in an area corresponding to the gate electrode GE, and the source electrode SE and the drain electrode DE which are separated from each other on the gate insulating layer GI so as to expose a portion of the active layer A. The source electrode SE extends from each of the data lines DL 1 to DL 6 .

An embodiment of the invention has described, as an example, a thin film transistor having a gate bottom structure, in which the gate electrode is formed under the source and drain electrodes, but is not limited to this example. It should be understood that a thin film transistor having a gate top structure, in which the gate electrode is formed on the source and drain electrodes, may be used. Since the thin film transistor having the gate top structure is known to those in the art, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

A first insulating layer INS 1 covering the thin film transistors and the data lines DL 1 to DL 6 and a second insulating layer INS 2 for planarization are formed on the gate insulating layer GI, on which the thin film transistors and the data lines DL 1 to DL 6 are formed. The pixel electrodes P 11 to P 66 are respectively connected to the drain electrodes DE of the thin film transistors through a contact hole passing through the first and second insulating layers INS 1 and INS 2 .

A first passivation layer PAS 1 covering the pixel electrodes P 11 to P 66 is formed. On the first passivation layer PAS 1 , the 2 - 1 touch routing wires TWP 12 , TWP 14 , TWP 16 , TWP 18 ; TWP 32 , TWP 34 , TWP 36 , TWP 38 ; TWP 52 , TWP 54 , TWP 56 , TWP 58 ; and TWP 72 , TWP 74 , TWP 76 , TWP 78 respectively connected to the 2 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 12 , Tx 14 , Tx 16 , Tx 18 ; Tx 32 , Tx 34 , Tx 36 , Tx 38 ; Tx 52 , Tx 54 , Tx 56 , Tx 58 ; and Tx 72 , Tx 74 , Tx 76 , Tx 78 are formed in parallel with one another, and the 2 - 2 touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 , and TWY 5 connected to the 2 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 21 , Tx 41 , Tx 61 , Tx 81 ; Tx 23 , Tx 43 , Tx 63 , Tx 83 ; Tx 25 , Tx 45 , Tx 65 , Tx 85 ; Tx 27 , Tx 47 , Tx 67 , Tx 87 ; and Tx 29 , Tx 49 , Tx 69 , Tx 89 are formed in parallel with one another. FIG. 7B shows the 2 - 1 touch routing wire TWP 12 as an example of the 2 - 1 touch routing wires and the 2 - 2 touch routing wire TWY 1 as an example of the 2 - 2 touch routing wires. The 2 - 2 touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 , and TWY 5 are configured so that each of the 2 - 2 touch routing wires is commonly connected to all of the 2 - 2 touch electrodes positioned on the same column, unlike the 2 - 1 touch routing wires.

A second passivation layer PAS 2 is formed on the first passivation layer PAS 1 to cover the 2 - 1 touch routing wires TWP 12 , TWP 14 , TWP 16 , TWP 18 ; TWP 32 , TWP 34 , TWP 36 , TWP 38 ; TWP 52 , TWP 54 , TWP 56 , TWP 58 ; and TWP 72 , TWP 74 , TWP 76 , TWP 78 and the 2 - 2 touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 , and TWY 5 . On the second passivation layer PAS 2 , the 1 - 1 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , and TWX 7 connecting the 1 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 13 , Tx 15 , Tx 17 ; Tx 31 , Tx 33 , Tx 35 , Tx 37 ; Tx 51 , Tx 53 , Tx 55 , Tx 57 ; and Tx 71 , Tx 73 , Tx 75 , Tx 77 positioned on the same row based on the row and the 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , and TWX 8 connecting the 1 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 22 , Tx 24 , Tx 26 , Tx 28 ; Tx 42 , Tx 44 , Tx 46 , Tx 48 ; Tx 62 , Tx 64 , Tx 66 , Tx 68 ; and Tx 82 , Tx 84 , Tx 86 , Tx 88 positioned on the same row based on the row are formed. FIG. 7A shows the 1 - 1 touch routing wire TWX 1 as an example of the 1 - 1 touch routing wires and the 1 - 2 touch routing wire TWX 2 as an example of the 1 - 2 touch routing wires.

A third passivation layer PAS 3 is formed on the second passivation layer PAS 2 to cover the 1 - 1 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , and TWX 7 and the 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , and TWX 8 . As shown in FIG. 3 , on the third passivation layer PAS 3 , the 1 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 13 , Tx 15 , Tx 17 ; Tx 31 , Tx 33 , Tx 35 , Tx 37 ; Tx 51 , Tx 53 , Tx 55 , Tx 57 ; and Tx 71 , Tx 73 , Tx 75 , Tx 77 , the 1 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 22 , Tx 24 , Tx 26 , Tx 28 ; Tx 42 , Tx 44 , Tx 46 , Tx 48 ; Tx 62 , Tx 64 , Tx 66 , Tx 68 ; and Tx 82 , Tx 84 , Tx 86 , Tx 88 , the 2 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 12 , Tx 14 , Tx 16 , Tx 18 ; Tx 32 , Tx 34 , Tx 36 , Tx 38 ; Tx 52 , Tx 54 , Tx 56 , Tx 58 ; and Tx 72 , Tx 74 , Tx 76 , Tx 78 , and the 2 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 21 , Tx 41 , Tx 61 , Tx 81 ; Tx 23 , Tx 43 , Tx 63 , Tx 83 ; Tx 25 , Tx 45 , Tx 65 , Tx 85 ; Tx 27 , Tx 47 , Tx 67 , Tx 87 ; and Tx 29 , Tx 49 , Tx 69 , Tx 89 are formed.

The 1 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 13 , Tx 15 , Tx 17 ; Tx 31 , Tx 33 , Tx 35 , Tx 37 ; Tx 51 , Tx 53 , Tx 55 , Tx 57 ; and Tx 71 , Tx 73 , Tx 75 , Tx 77 are formed on the second passivation layer PAS 2 through a contact hole CH 11 passing through the third passivation layer PAS 3 and are connected to the 1 - 1 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , and TWX 7 , which are arranged in parallel with one another in the first direction, based on the row (refer to FIGS. 3 and 7A ). The 1 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 22 , Tx 24 , Tx 26 , Tx 28 ; Tx 42 , Tx 44 , Tx 46 , Tx 48 ; Tx 62 , Tx 64 , Tx 66 , Tx 68 ; and Tx 82 , Tx 84 , Tx 86 , Tx 88 are formed on the second passivation layer PAS 2 through a contact hole CH 22 passing through the third passivation layer PAS 3 and are connected to the 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , and TWX 8 , which are arranged in parallel with one another in the first direction, based on the row (refer to FIGS. 3 and 7A ).

The 2 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 12 , Tx 14 , Tx 16 , Tx 18 ; Tx 32 , Tx 34 , Tx 36 , Tx 38 ; Tx 52 , Tx 54 , Tx 56 , Tx 58 ; and Tx 72 , Tx 74 , Tx 76 , Tx 78 are formed on the first passivation layer PAS 1 through a contact hole CH 12 passing through the second and third passivation layers PAS 2 and PAS 3 and are respectively connected to the 2 - 1 touch routing wires TWP 12 , TWP 14 , TWP 16 , TWP 18 ; TWP 32 , TWP 34 , TWP 36 , TWP 38 ; TWP 52 , TWP 54 , TWP 56 , TWP 58 ; and TWP 72 , TWP 74 , TWP 76 , TWP 78 , which are arranged in parallel with one another in the second direction crossing the first direction (refer to FIGS. 3 and 7B ). The 2 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 21 , Tx 41 , Tx 61 , Tx 81 ; Tx 23 , Tx 43 , Tx 63 , Tx 83 ; Tx 25 , Tx 45 , Tx 65 , Tx 85 ; Tx 27 , Tx 47 , Tx 67 , Tx 87 ; and Tx 29 , Tx 49 , Tx 69 , Tx 89 are formed on the first passivation layer PAS 1 through a contact hole CH 21 passing through the second and third passivation layers PAS 2 and PAS 3 and are connected to the 2 - 2 touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 , and TWY 5 , which are arranged in parallel with one another in the second direction, based on the column (refer to FIGS. 3 and 7B ).

Next, another example of a connection structure between the touch routing wires and the touch electrodes in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first embodiment of the invention is described in detail with reference to FIGS. 8, 9A, and 9B . FIG. 8 is a plane view showing another example of an area corresponding to one pixel electrode shown in FIG. 5 . FIG. 9A is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires and the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch electrodes shown in FIG. 5 in a structure shown in FIG. 8 . FIG. 9B is a cross-sectional view showing a connection configuration between the 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch routing wires and the 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch electrodes shown in FIG. 5 in the structure shown in FIG. 8 . In the following description, an embodiment of the invention is described based on one pixel area for the sake of brevity and ease of reading.

The example shown in FIGS. 8 to 9B is substantially similar to the example shown in FIGS. 6 to 7B , except a formation location of the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires, the connection configuration between the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires and the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch electrodes, and the removal of the third passivation layer. Thus, a difference between the example shown in FIGS. 8 to 9B and the example shown in FIGS. 6 to 7B is described below.

As shown in FIGS. 8 to 9B , in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the embodiment of the invention, the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , TWX 7 ; and TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , TWX 8 are arranged in parallel with each other in the first direction, do not overlap the gate line GL, and are formed on the substrate corresponding to the same level layer as the gate line GL. Thus, the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , TWX 7 ; and TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , TWX 8 shown in FIGS. 8 to 9B are different from the example shown in FIGS. 6 to 7B overlapping the gate line GL.

The 1 - 1 touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 3 , TWX 5 , and TWX 7 connect the 1 - 1 touch electrodes Tx 11 , Tx 13 , Tx 15 , Tx 17 ; Tx 31 , Tx 33 , Tx 35 , Tx 37 ; Tx 51 , Tx 53 , Tx 55 , Tx 57 ; and Tx 71 , Tx 73 , Tx 75 , Tx 77 , which are disposed on the odd-numbered columns of the odd-numbered rows, based on the row through a contact hole passing through the gate insulating layer GI, the first and second insulating layers INS 1 and INS 2 , and the first to third passivation layers PAS 1 to PAS 3 . Further, the 1 - 2 touch routing wires TWX 2 , TWX 4 , TWX 6 , and TWX 8 connect the 1 - 2 touch electrodes Tx 22 , Tx 24 , Tx 26 , Tx 28 ; Tx 42 , Tx 44 , Tx 46 , Tx 48 ; Tx 62 , Tx 64 , Tx 66 , Tx 68 ; and Tx 82 , Tx 84 , Tx 86 , Tx 88 , which are disposed on the even-numbered columns of the even-numbered rows, based on the row through a contact hole passing through the gate insulating layer GI, the first and second insulating layers INS 1 and INK, and the first and second passivation layers PAS 1 and PAS 2 .

Because the connection configuration between the 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch electrodes and the 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch routing wires was described above with reference to FIGS. 6 to 7B , a further description thereof may be omitted.

Next, a touch sensor integrated type display device according to a second embodiment of the invention is described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11 . FIG. 10 is a plane view of the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the second embodiment of the invention. FIG. 11 is a plane view enlarging an area R 3 shown in FIG. 10 .

As shown in FIG. 10 , the touch sensor integrated type display device according to a second embodiment of the invention includes an active area AA and a bezel area BA positioned outside the active area AA. The active area AA is an area, in which touch electrodes serving as common electrodes are formed and data is displayed. The bezel area BA is an area, in which a touch IC 100 and various wires including routing wires extending from the active area AA are formed.

The active area AA of the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the second embodiment of the invention includes a plurality of touch electrodes serving as common electrodes (hereinafter abbreviated to “touch electrodes”) Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , Tx 51 -Tx 54 , Tx 61 -Tx 64 , Tx 71 -Tx 74 , Tx 81 -Tx 84 , and Tx 91 -Tx 94 divided in an oblique direction inclined from a first direction (for example, x-axis direction or y-axis direction) by a predetermined angle and in an oblique direction inclined from a second direction (for example, y-axis direction or x-axis direction) by a predetermined angle. Each of the touch electrodes Tx 11 -Tx 14 , Tx 21 -Tx 24 , Tx 31 -Tx 34 , Tx 41 -Tx 44 , Tx 51 -Tx 54 , Tx 61 -Tx 64 , Tx 71 -Tx 74 , Tx 81 -Tx 84 , and Tx 91 -Tx 94 includes a first touch electrode of a rectangular shape and a second touch electrode of a frame shape surrounding the first touch electrode.

For example, as shown in FIG. 11 enlarging a partial area R 3 of FIG. 10 , the touch electrode Tx 22 includes a first touch electrode Tx 22 a and a second touch electrode Tx 22 b , the touch electrode Tx 31 includes a first touch electrode Tx 31 a and a second touch electrode Tx 31 b , the touch electrode Tx 32 includes a first touch electrode Tx 32 a and a second touch electrode Tx 32 b , and the touch electrode Tx 42 includes a first touch electrode Tx 42 a and a second touch electrode Tx 42 b . As described above, all of the touch electrodes each include the first touch electrode and the second touch electrode.

The adjacent first touch electrodes Tx 11 a -Tx 14 a , Tx 21 a -Tx 24 a , Tx 31 a -Tx 34 a , Tx 41 a -Tx 44 a , Tx 51 a -Tx 54 a , Tx 61 a -Tx 64 a , Tx 71 a -Tx 74 a , Tx 81 a -Tx 84 a , and Tx 91 a -Tx 94 a are connected by touch link lines TL 11 , TL 12 , TL 21 , TL 22 , TL 31 , TL 32 , TL 41 , TL 42 , TL 51 , and TL 52 to form a quadrangle, for example. FIG. 11 shows an example where the four first touch electrodes are connected by one touch link line. However, in the example shown in FIG. 11 , three or less first touch electrodes in the first touch electrodes Tx 11 a , Tx 12 a , Tx 13 a , Tx 21 a , Tx 23 a , Tx 34 a , Tx 41 a , Tx 51 a , Tx 61 a , Tx 81 a , Tx 83 a , Tx 91 a , Tx 92 a , and Tx 93 a (refer to FIG. 10 ) positioned at edges and corners of the active area AA are connected to one another depending on a disposition relationship.

The touch link lines TL 11 , TL 12 , TL 21 , TL 22 , TL 31 , TL 32 , TL 41 , TL 42 , TL 51 , and TL 52 grouping the first touch electrodes Tx 11 a -Tx 14 a , Tx 21 a -Tx 24 a , Tx 31 a -Tx 34 a , Tx 41 a -Tx 44 a , Tx 51 a -Tx 54 a , Tx 61 a -Tx 64 a , Tx 71 a -Tx 74 a , Tx 81 a -Tx 84 a , and Tx 91 a -Tx 94 a are respectively connected to first touch routing wires TWP 1 , TWP 2 , . . . , and TWP 10 .

The embodiment of the invention shows an example where the four first touch electrodes are connected to one another by one touch link line to form the quadrangle through their connection line, but is not limited thereto. Embodiments of the invention may form a triangle, a polygon, a star shape, etc., if necessary or desired.

The second touch electrodes Tx 11 b , Tx 31 b , Tx 51 b , Tx 71 b , Tx 91 b ; Tx 12 b , Tx 32 b , Tx 52 b , Tx 72 b , Tx 92 b ; Tx 13 b , Tx 33 b , Tx 53 b , Tx 73 b , Tx 93 b ; and Tx 14 b , Tx 34 b , Tx 54 b , Tx 74 b , Tx 94 b positioned on odd-numbered rows are connected to one another through second touch routing wires TWY 1 , TWY 21 , TWY 3 , and TWY 4 , which are arranged in parallel with one another in the second direction, based on the column. The second touch electrodes Tx 21 b , Tx 22 b , Tx 23 b , Tx 24 b ; Tx 41 b , Tx 42 b , Tx 43 b , Tx 44 b ; Tx 61 b , Tx 62 b , Tx 63 b , Tx 64 b ; and Tx 81 b , Tx 82 b , Tx 83 b , Tx 84 b positioned on even-numbered rows are connected to one another through third touch routing wires TWX 1 , TWX 2 , TWX 3 , and TWX 4 , which are arranged in parallel with one another in the first direction, based on the row.

Unlike the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the second touch electrodes positioned on the odd-numbered rows may be connected to one another through the touch routing wires, which are arranged in parallel with one another in the first direction, based on the row. Further, the second touch electrodes positioned on the even-numbered rows may be connected to one another through the touch routing wires, which are arranged in parallel with one another in the second direction, based on the column.

In the second embodiment of the invention, the first to third touch routing wires TWP 2 , . . . , TWP 10 ; TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 ; and TWX 1 , TWX 2 , TWX 3 , TWX 4 are connected to the touch IC 100 , and thus supplies a common voltage to the touch IC 100 in a display drive and supplies a touch driving voltage to the touch IC 100 in a touch drive. Then, the first to third touch routing wires TWP 2 , . . . , TWP 10 ; TWY 1 , TWY 2 , TWY 3 , TWY 4 ; and TWX 1 , TWX 2 , TWX 3 , TWX 4 sense changes in a capacitance of each touch electrode and supplies the sensed changes to the touch IC 100 .

The second embodiment of the invention may be similar to the first embodiment of the invention, except that each touch electrode includes the first touch electrode and the second touch electrode and is arranged in the oblique direction, and the touch link lines are added. The second embodiment of the invention is may be similar to the first embodiment of the invention, except that the third touch routing wires are formed by additionally forming a passivation layer on a layer different from a formation layer of the 1 - 1 and 1 - 2 touch routing wires and the 2 - 1 and 2 - 2 touch routing wires so as to group the first touch electrodes into several units, forming the touch link lines on the added passivation layer, and forming a contact hole. Thus, a further description may be omitted so as to avoid duplication of the description.

Next, a drive of the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first and second embodiments of the invention is described with reference to FIG. 12 . FIG. 12 illustrates an operation of a display driving period and an operation of a touch driving period in the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first and second embodiments of the invention.

As shown in FIG. 12 , the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first and second embodiments of the invention time-divides each horizontal period 1 H into a display driving period and a touch driving period. During the display driving period, a common voltage Vcom is supplied to the touch electrodes Tx serving as the common electrode, a turn-on voltage VHL of the pixel is sequentially applied to the gate lines GL by a multiplexer MUX (a turn-off voltage VGL of the pixel is applied to the remaining gate lines), and a data voltage Vd is supplied to the data lines DL by the multiplexer MUX. Next, during the touch driving period, a touch driving voltage Vtsp is supplied to all of the touch electrodes Tx by the multiplexer MUX, and a voltage having the same frequency and the same magnitude as the touch driving voltage Vtsp is supplied to all of the gate lines GL and the data lines DL by the multiplexer MUX.

As described above, the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the embodiments of the invention may supply a voltage having the same frequency and/or the same magnitude as the touch driving voltage supplied to the touch electrodes to the gate lines and the data lines during the touch driving period, thereby preventing a parasitic capacitance from being generated between the touch routing wires and the gate lines and between the touch routing wires and the data lines. Thus, the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the embodiments of the invention may prevent a reduction in the touch sensitivity resulting from the parasitic capacitance.

Further, because the touch sensor integrated type display device according to the first and second embodiments of the invention may markedly reduce the number of touch routing wires, the number of touch routing wires connected to the touch electrodes may be markedly reduced. Thus, the embodiments of the invention may prevent an increase in the size of the touch IC resulting from the large-sized display device and may reduce the manufacturing cost.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the touch sensor integrated type display device of the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.